On Monday October 31, Anime Limited will release Psycho-Pass The Movie as a Blu-ray/DVD Collectors Edition and a standard DVD. The Collectors Edition will include a 32-page booklet with film art and staff and cast interviews, plus a US Staff and Cast commentary on the Blu-ray disc. Funimation has described the film's story:

In a futuristic Japan, the Sibyl System is charged with keeping the peace. When the state of SEAUn brings the Sibyl System in to test its effectiveness, it becomes a haven of peace and safety—for a time. Eventually, terrorists from SEAUn begin appearing in Japan, somehow slipping through the System's security and attacking from within. Desperate for answers, Inspector Akane Tsunemori is sent overseas to bring the terrorists to justice. But when her investigation forces her into a standoff with an old ally, will she be able to pull the trigger?

The anime adapts Kota Nozomi's Inou Battle Within Everyday Life (Inō-Battle wa Nichijō-kei no Naka de/INOU-Battle in the Usually Daze.) novel series. In the original novel series' story, the five members of the literature club awakened with extraordinary powers half a year ago. Although the members expected to be thrown into a world of super-powered battles (inō-battle) at their school, their normal daily routine continued.

Funimation will release Yuri Kuma Arashi as a dual formal Blu-ray/DVD. Funimation described the story:

After an asteroid explosion and meteor shower lit up the sky over planet earth, strange adorable bears began to attack and devour humans. The earthlings responded with violence of their own, and in the end, a massive barrier – the Wall of Extinction – was erected to separate man from bear. This fragile peace lasted until two high school girls encounter a yuri flower blooming – only to be shaken by the piercing warning of the Bear Alarm! Once again, bear and man- or bear and girl -will be pitted against each other in a deadly and mysterious showdown—brought to you by Kunihiko Ikuhara, the director of Sailor Moon and Revolutionary Girl Utena.

It's just a game,or so I thought.. A brand new story written by original author, Reki Kawahara!! People everywhere were enjoying a new game called Ordinal Scale, an ARMMORPG developed exclusively for the Augma, a new wearable console designed for AR (augmented reality) gaming. But, the players had no idea that a nightmare from the virtual world was starting to spread into reality!! As his fellow players find themselves in danger, the hero is called upon once again.

The film will feature a returning cast from the previous two anime series, including:

The film's all-new original story takes place after the Mother's Rosario arc, which was the final arc depicted in the TV anime's second season. Original light novel author Reki Kawahara is writing the new story for the film. Tomohiko Ito is returning from the two TV anime series and the anime special to direct the film at A-1 Pictures. Shingo Adachi is also returning from the TV anime to design the characters based on abec's original character designs, and Yuki Kajiura is returning to score the music

It's just a game,or so I thought.. A brand new story written by original author, Reki Kawahara!! People everywhere were enjoying a new game called Ordinal Scale, an ARMMORPG developed exclusively for the Augma, a new wearable console designed for AR (augmented reality) gaming. But, the players had no idea that a nightmare from the virtual world was starting to spread into reality!! As his fellow players find themselves in danger, the hero is called upon once again.

The film will feature a returning cast from the previous two anime series, including:

The film's all-new original story takes place after the Mother's Rosario arc, which was the final arc depicted in the TV anime's second season. Original light novel author Reki Kawahara is writing the new story for the film. Tomohiko Ito is returning from the two TV anime series and the anime special to direct the film at A-1 Pictures. Shingo Adachi is also returning from the TV anime to design the characters based on abec's original character designs, and Yuki Kajiura is returning to score the music.

Based on CAPCOM's hit franchise, Monster Hunter, an exciting new anime comes from the creative minds behind JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. In a world where people and monsters are at odds, some learn to coexist. Known as Riders, they awaken the powers of monsters and live alongside them in secrecy. Now, one young boy journeys to find his own companion and become the world's greatest Rider.

The anime premiered in Japan on October 2, and Crunchyroll is streaming the series as it airs with English subtitles.

For the sake of his motives, Aigami spies on Yugi and his friends as they live their everyday lives. However, after coming in contact with Kaiba, and because their goals conflict, they begin a duel. To combat Kaiba, a skilled and powerful duelist, Aigami employs frightening tactics...!

The staff and cast of In This Corner of the World anime film confirmed at the Tokyo International Film Festival on Friday that the film has been licensed in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Mexico, and 10 other countries and territories. They also added that the movie received offers from more countries and territories in North America, South America, and Asia.
The film will open in Japan on November 12. The film screened at Annecy in a Work in Progress session in June. Animatsu Entertainmentacquired the global rights to the film.
The film is based on Fumiyo Kono's To All The Corners Of The World (Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni) manga. The award-winning manga follows a bride named Suzu Urano as she moves to her new life in Kure City on the coast of Hiroshima Prefecture. Suzu perseveres through World War II with pluck and determination.
The cast includes:

I wish we had never met. I wish we could meet once again. A boy who can hear, Shoya Ishida, and a transfer student who can't, Shoko Nishimiya. One fateful day, the two meet, and Shoya leads the class in bullying Shoko. But before long, the class shifts its target from Shoko to Shoya. Years later, Shoya feels strongly that he must see Shoko once again.

BBC Worldwide has confirmed the additional material that will be included on the release of the animated version of The Power of the Daleks.

This highly anticipated adventure will be released on BBC Store on Saturday 5th November, exactly 50 years to the minute after it was first transmitted on BBC One at 5.50pm. The UK release of the DVD will follow on Monday 21st November. A wealth of extra material will be available with both the BBC Store and DVD releases.

Extra treats fans can look forward to include commentaries and surviving footage, together with a documentary feature which stars the original cast and crew. Other bonus features include a gallery of artwork from the animation, and original shooting script. There’s even a rare chance to hear the original Dalek recordings from the show.

Power of the Daleks is one of the Doctor’s most celebrated adventures and yet no complete film recordings of The Power of the Daleks are known to have survived. The master negatives were destroyed in an archive purge in 1974.

The six 25 minute episodes feature the regeneration, or as it was then called ‘renewal’, of First Doctor William Hartnell into Second Doctor Patrick Troughton, as the Time Lord and his companions Polly (Anneke Wills) and Ben (Michael Craze) do battle with the Daleks on the planet Vulcan.

Animator Charles Norton says:

It’s been wonderful to have been able to track down so much rare and previously unreleased material and I hope that fans enjoy the excellent package we’ve been able to assemble.

Doctor Who: The Power of the Daleks will be priced at £9.99 SD and £12.99 HD from bbcstore.com from 5th November where each episode will air on consecutive days.

The DVD will be released in the UK on 21st November priced at £20.42

A full list of extras is here, and will be available on BBC Store from 14th November and on the DVD on the 21st;

Alternate soundtracks – DVD only

The option to listen to the story with a series of completely new digital re-masters of the original soundtrack – a stereo mix; a 5.1 surround sound mix and version of the original 1966 mono sound mix.

Animation Test Footage

A compilation of animation tests, created during the production of the new animated series.

Audio Commentaries on all 6 episodes – DVD only

Members of the original cast and crew are joined by members of the new animation unit to discuss the production of the story and its new animated reconstruction. Moderated by Toby Hadoke. Includes archive audio.

Booklet with Production Notes – DVD only

An extensively researched set of production notes, written by the noted television historian Andrew Pixley, covering the behind the scenes story of how the original production was made.

Original Camera Scripts – DVD only

Selected items of original production paperwork and a complete set of original camera scripts

Original Title Sequence - new restoration

An unedited presentation of the full original 'Doctor Who' title sequence, prepared using an all new HD re-master of the original film elements.

The Power of the Daleks Animation and Photo Gallery

An extended gallery of images, featuring production photographs from the original 1966 series and artwork from the latest animated production, accompanied by incidental music from the story, which has been digitally re-mastered from the original music production tapes.

The Power of the Daleks Surviving Footage & Original Trailer – BBC Store/EST only

A compilation of short film fragments and clips from the original 1966 BBC television production - the only surviving footage to remain of the show's original BBC1 run.

Original Dalek Voice Session Recording (1966) DVD only

Rare and previously unreleased sections from the studio recordings that were made at Maida Vale Studios in 1966 for the Dalek voices.

Servants and Masters - The Making of The Power of the Daleks

A specially prepared documentary directed by John Kelly and featuring interviews with members of the original 1966 cast and crew.

Telesnap reconstruction.

Around 400 individual still frames of film exist from the original 1966 television production of The Power of the Daleks. These images were kept in the programme's production files by the BBC Written Archive Centre. These images are here combined with the programme's soundtrack to present a photographic reconstruction of the original programme.

Friday, 28 October 2016

Kyoto Prefectural Police arrested two Chinese individuals on Thursday on charges of violating the Copyright Act. The two suspects were both located in Tokyo. The first suspect is a 29-year-old male living in Edogawa ward. Police purport that the suspect participates in sales of dōjinshi (self-published books). The second suspect is a 23-year-old male college student.
According to police, the first suspect is accused of providing Chinese subtitles to episodes of the 2014 television anime Saki - The Nationals, and uploading the subtitled episodes on a file sharing service. The second suspect allegedly subtitled a different anime in Chinese, and similarly used a file sharing service, but the report didn't mention the anime.

The film will open in Australia on November 24. The site has a complete list of theaters screening the film.

Funimation will screen the film theatrically in North America before the end of the year, and before releasing it in digital. The theatrical release will be a qualifying run for the Academy Awards. A film has to run in a theater in Los Angeles County for a week to qualify for consideration in the awards.

The film's "story of miracles and love" revolves around Mitsuha and Taki. Mitsuha is a female high school student who lives in a rural town nestled deep in the mountains. Her father is the mayor and isn't at home much, and she lives with her elementary school-aged little sister and her grandmother. Mitsuha has an honest personality, but she doesn't like the customs of her family's Shinto shrine, nor does she like her father participating in an election campaign. She laments that she lives in a confined rural town, and yearns for the wonderful lifestyle of living in Tokyo.
Taki is a male high school student who lives in central Tokyo. He spends time with his friends, works part-time at an Italian restaurant, and is interested in architecture and fine arts. One day, Mitsuha has a dream where she is a young man. Taki also has a dream where he is a female high school student in a town in the mountains that he has never been to. What is the secret to their dreams of personal experience? Funimation announced that it licensed the film in July, The film is slated to open in 85 countries and regions. The film held its world premiere on July 3 in Los Angeles during Anime Expo. The Busan International Film Festival in South Korea screened the film on October 9.
The film has earned earned 16.41 billion yen (about US$158 million) in Japan as of Monday, after 60 days in the Japanese box office. The film is now the fourth highest-grossing anime film in Japan, the fifth highest-grossing Japanese film in the country, and the ninth highest-grossing film of all time in Japan.
The film has surpassed the box office total of Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki's Ponyo anime film (which earned 15.5 billion yen) and James Cameron's Avatar film (which earned 15.6 billion yen). The only anime films to earn more than your name. are Ghibli and Miyazaki's Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle and Princess Mononoke. The film is now projected to possibly approach 20 billion yen (US$200 million).
Shinkai also wrote the script for the film. Masashi Ando (Spirited Away, When Marnie Was There, Paprika) served as the animation director and Masayoshi Tanaka (anohana, The Anthem of the Heart, Toradora!) designed the characters. CoMix Wave Inc. animated the film.

The latest entry in the Persona role-playing game series shipped for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3 in Japan on September 15 in Japan, and will ship on February 14, 2017 in the Americas and Europe.

Atlus will offer the American release in a "Take Your Heart" Premium Edition that includes a soundtrack CD, a Morgana plush, a hardcover art book, a steelbook, and a school bag. The game will also be available in a SteelBook Edition.
The game features animation sequences from the Production I.G studio.
The Persona 5 the Animation -The Day Breakers- television anime special aired on September 3. The special recounts the prologue story of the young thief organization at the center of the game. Crunchyrollstreamed the television special, and Aniplex of America will release it on an import Blu-ray Disc of the Collector's Edition on February 14.

SEGAannounced on its official website on Thursday that it has the sole worldwide rights to distribute sales of video games based on the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympic Games. The rights include games on console, PC, handheld, online, and for business use. SEGA previously published games based on the Olympic Games, including Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (for the Beijing games in 2008), Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (for the Vancouver games in 2010), Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, and Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

A thick fog and a girl in distress are just the things that Ian Chesterton needs to escape from a life of dull routine. He has no idea that this is merely a prelude to an adventure quite beyond any normal conception of the word. Or that Barnes Common on a foggy autumn night is the last view of Earth he may ever have.

Both he and the girl he tries to help, Barbara Wright, are transported to a distant planet named Skaro by a mysterious old man known to them as the Doctor. With his grand-daughter Susan, the Doctor sets them down in a world all but destroyed by atomic warfare, the only survivors being a peace-loving and cultured people called the Thals and their bitter enemies the Daleks, horribly mutated both in body and mind.

Thrust into constant danger, his courage and determination tested almost beyond endurance, Ian is forced to struggle against alien creatures and superior enemies with no other weapons than surprise and ingenuity.

The rewards of victory are life for Ian and his new friends...but life where? Can the Doctor return him and Barbara to Earth again?

Doctor Who and the ZarbiWritten by Bill Strutton, originally published in 1965Published by BBC Books 3rd November 2016[order from Amazon UK]Based on the Doctor Who story The Web Planet

The Zarbi, huge ant-like creatures with metallic bodies and pincer claws, are waiting for Tardis when it’s police-box shape materialises on the cold and craggy planet Vortis. They capture Doctor Who, Ian and Vicki and take them to their weird headquarters, a city of web-like organic matter.

But the Zarbi are not the only being in Vortis. Barbara has fallen into the hands of the butterfly-creatures with soft voices and iridescent wings, whose civilisation has been destroyed by the Zarbi. She learns that her captors are only the advance party of Menoptera in exile who plan to win back their planet by and invasion form outerspace. For the Zarbi “have brought the dark age to Vortis”.

In the final thrilling chapters, Doctor Who and the crew of tardis encounter the power which controls both the Zarbi and the living Web City. How can they defeat this strange bladder of dazzling light which draws in and absorbs all who come into its presence?

Doctor Who and the CrusadersWritten by David Whitaker, originally published in 1965Published by BBC Books 3rd November 2016[order from Amazon UK]Based on the Doctor Who story The Crusade

From unknown Space the Tardis returns to Earth, but not to the world Ian and Barbara know. The little blue telephone box has wheeled sharply in the cosmos and cut back through the pattern of history to the struggle between Richard the Lionheart and Saladin, Crusader v. Saracen.

When Barbara is captured by the Saracens and later kidnapped by the monstrous El Akir, Ian appeals to Richard for help, but despite having achieved a splendid victory over Saladin at Arsuf the English King has his own troubles and cannot assist him. So Ian sets out to rescue Barbara alone while the Doctor becomes involved in court intrigues. In a dramatic climax, Ian finds himself fighting for his life in the harsh, cruel world of the twelfth century, where only the cleverest and strongest survive.

Readers of Doctor Who’s adventure with the Daleks and Doctor Who and the Zarbi will find here all the excitement that made those books firm favourites with youngsters of all age groups.

Titan Comics and Humble Bundle have announced the launch of the Doctor Who Humble Comics Bundle.

Humble Bundle offers collections of videogames, books, and comics at a price determined by the customer. Content is divided into three tiers: pay $1 or more to purchase the first tier; pay $8 or more to purchase tier one and two; and pay $15 or more for content from all three tiers. A portion of each Humble Bundle sale goes to charity. Over $75 million has been donated to charities around the world since the company’s launch in 2010.

When purchasing the Doctor Who Humble Comics Bundle, in addition to furnishing your chosen digital device with an Doctor Who comics library, you’ll also be able to choose to donate any percentage of the Bundle’s retail price to BBC Children In Need, which currently supports over 2,400 projects to help disadvantaged children and young people across the UK.

Thursday, 27 October 2016

Entertainment news magazine Varietyreported on Wednesday that Funimation is expected to release Makoto Shinkai's your name. (Kimi no Na wa.) anime film theatrically before the end of the year, and before releasing the film in digital. The report states that Funimation's 2016 theatrical release will be a qualifying run for the Academy Awards. A film has to run in a theater in Los Angeles County for a week to qualify for consideration in the awards.
The film's "story of miracles and love" revolves around Mitsuha and Taki. Mitsuha is a female high school student who lives in a rural town nestled deep in the mountains. Her father is the mayor and isn't at home much, and she lives with her elementary school-aged little sister and her grandmother. Mitsuha has an honest personality, but she doesn't like the customs of her family's Shinto shrine, nor does she like her father participating in an election campaign. She laments that she lives in a confined rural town, and yearns for the wonderful lifestyle of living in Tokyo.
Taki is a male high school student who lives in central Tokyo. He spends time with his friends, works part-time at an Italian restaurant, and is interested in architecture and fine arts. One day, Mitsuha has a dream where she is a young man. Taki also has a dream where he is a female high school student in a town in the mountains that he has never been to. What is the secret to their dreams of personal experience? Funimation announced that it licensed the film in July, The film is slated to open in 85 countries and regions. The film held its world premiere on July 3 in Los Angeles during Anime Expo. The Busan International Film Festival in South Korea screened the film on October 9.
The film has earned earned 16.41 billion yen (about US$158 million) in Japan as of Monday, after 60 days in the Japanese box office. The film is now the fourth highest-grossing anime film in Japan, the fifth highest-grossing Japanese film in the country, and the ninth highest-grossing film of all time in Japan.
The film has surpassed the box office total of Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki's Ponyo anime film (which earned 15.5 billion yen) and James Cameron's Avatar film (which earned 15.6 billion yen). The only anime films to earn more than your name. are Ghibli and Miyazaki's Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle and Princess Mononoke. The film is now projected to possibly approach 20 billion yen (US$200 million).
Shinkai also wrote the script for the film. Masashi Ando (Spirited Away, When Marnie Was There, Paprika) served as the animation director and Masayoshi Tanaka (anohana, The Anthem of the Heart, Toradora!) designed the characters. CoMix Wave Inc. animated the film.

Takeo Gōda is a giant guy with a giant heart. Too bad the girls don't want him! (They want his good-looking best friend, Sunakawa.) Used to being on the sidelines, Takeo simply stands tall and accepts his fate. But one day when he saves a girl named Yamato from a harasser on the train, his (love!) life suddenly takes an incredible turn!

Wednesday, 26 October 2016

Pied Piper, Inc.announced on Tuesday that its Kickstarter-funded English dub of Skip Beat! will include four songs recorded in English: the first opening theme song "Dream Star," the second opening theme song "Renaissance," the insert song "Burnin' Down" from episode 11, and the insert song "Prisoner" from episode 19. The company asked for backer input on whether the English opening theme songs will be used in the episodes themselves or only as extras. Pied Piper's president Ann Yamamoto explained that the company was required to submit the English lyrics in advance to get approvals from TV Tokyo Music and the Japanese lyricist. Pied Piper was not able to get approvals for the two ending theme songs "Namida" and "Eien."
Magnolia Memoir and Mela Lee will perform "Dream Star," featuring Cristina Vee. Magnolia Memoir and Erica Lindbeck will perform "Renaissance," with additional vocals by Mela Lee. Nathan Sharp will perform the two insert songs — both are performed by the character Sho Fuwa, normally voiced by Grant George.
Dan Antunovich is producing and providing the bass for all four songs and Michael "Fish" Herring is providing the guitar. Antunovich is also providing synths and keyboards for the two opening theme songs and drums and keyboards for the two insert songs. The two opening songs also feature Neal Daniels is on drums and Alexander Burke on additional keyboards.

The Kickstarter campaign had set an initial goal of US$155,000 to fund a DVD release. The campaign reached its US$185,000 stretch goal on April 14 to offer a Blu-ray Disc release in addition to the DVD release. The campaign ended on April 16 having raised US$224,546.

The company is accepting additional and upgraded pledges through the BackerKit service through November 15. The DVD and Blu-ray Disc is slated for 2017. Pied Piper had originally launched an Indiegogo campaign for the franchise on March 1, but then relaunched the campaign on Kickstarter on March 17. Pied Piper acquired the license from TV Tokyo, and TV Tokyo is requiring the English dub as a condition of release. The company will not be able to release the series on a subtitle-only format. The license covers the United States and Canada only.
The television version of Yoshiki Nakamura's Skip Beat!shōjo manga premiered in Japan in October 2008. The series is available streaming on Crunchyroll. Viz Media publishes the original manga in North America